The present invention relates to methods and apparatus for supporting a window glass lift plate, such as during manufacture and/or transport.
Use of regulators (e.g., rail-less regulators) for moving window glass up and down poses an inherent problem in that the only position that the lift plate (the plate that connects the lift mechanics to a lower edge of the door glass) can be parked for shipment to the vehicle manufacturer is the full-down position. This is so because the full-down position is the only known position that is sufficiently repeatable during manufacture, and thus provides a guarantee as to the position of the lift plate for the manufacturer. For an application with a full glass drop this is problematic, particularly when using snap glass. Indeed, with a full drop glass design, the glass goes all the way down into the door module during a window opening operation (with the top edge at or below the belt line). During manufacture of an automobile with such a design, the glass is inserted through a slot at the top of the door module, and down to the lift plate where it should be clamped.
The insertion of window glass into the lift plate during manufacture is not necessarily a repeatable operation, as there is usually inconsistency in the position of the window glass relative to the lift plate. Indeed, human error during insertion of the window glass, variation in the placement and adjustment of clamps or other mechanisms used for securing the window glass to the lift plate, etc. contribute to such inconsistency. If the manufacturer fails to install the window glass correctly on the first attempt (i.e., getting the lower edge of the window glass into the lift plate), it is difficult to get the top edge of the glass back above the belt-line to make a second attempt at installation.
Unlike the rail-less design, single and dual rail applications can park the lift plate(s) at a customer specified height—such that the top edge of the glass is above the beltline during manufacture and the lower edge of the glass plate can be moved into the lift plate (with multiple attempts if needed). Typically, there is a round access hole in the door module carrier that is aligned with the interface of the glass and the lift plate at the park position.